Kenny Baker and Bill Monroe – William Purcell photo<\/p><\/div>\n

I was going through some boxes of old reel to reel tapes the other day, trying to digitize them before they crumbled into dust. \u00a0I found a couple of tapes that I didn’t recognize, and I’m still not quite sure who they came from. \u00a0I easily recognized the performers and the venue\u00a0 though, and I thought readers might like a glimpse of a performance that may not have been heard since May of 1963, when it was recorded.<\/p>\n

I am speaking of Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys<\/strong>\u00a0(“BGB”), with Bessie Lee Maudlin on bass, Del McCoury on guitar, Bill Keith on banjo, and Kenny Baker on fiddle. \u00a0They were playing the Ash Grove<\/strong>, 8162 Melrose Blvd. in Hollywood, for a six-night appearance. \u00a0That evening, the BGB were joined on-stage by former BGB Gordon Terry, who Bill invited to perform with them. \u00a0One of the numbers Bill decided to do was “Just A Little Talk With Jesus”, and he drafted Terry to do the bass lead singing on the chorus \u00a0 Not all the BGB participated in this song. \u00a0The result was a bit of impromptu arranging, with a little insight on how Monroe could put people “on the spot”. \u00a0 \u00a0You’ll notice a bit of a pause before Gordon got the hint to start the chorus. \u00a0 To all of us gathered around the little stage, the “School Of Bluegrass” was in session . . .<\/p>\n

Click on the title below to listen to an MP3.<\/p>\n